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Ryu Hayabusa
''"My strength comes from training, not from some curse in my blood." ''- Ryu Hayabusa Ryu Hayabusa(龍 隼 Ryū Hayabusa Dragon Peregrine Falcon) is the main protagonist in the Ninja Gaiden series developed by Team Ninja and published by Tecmo. Ryu is also known as "the Super Ninja" or "the Singular Super Ninja", "Dragon Ninja" and "the Modern Day Ninja". Appearance Ryu is the epitome of a present day ninja, his Legendary Black Falcon outfit's sleek design is similar to that of the modern special ops agent, while the tabi boots, ninja head piece, mask, scarf and shin/forearm guards are reminiscent of the ancient ninja warrior. His classic Ryuken outfit sports a traditional ninja uniform with a slight 80s twist. The Hayabusa clan standard purple ninja uniform Ryu initially wears is the most traditional of his ninja attire. Physically Ryu Hayabusa is a young man in his early 20s, standing at 5'10" and weighing in at 172 lbs. He is in peak physical condition with a muscular build. As a ninja, most of his costumes and attire conceal his face, revealing only his eyes, one of his most distinctive features. Ryu's eyes feature dragon green coloration with a slight golden hue and an Asian shaped epicanthic fold. This golden hue feature is more prominent accompanied with his wardrobe composed of mostly dark colors, something that points out even more of his peculiar eyes and gives him an intimidating appearance. Underneath the ninja mask and hood reveals a youthful face, and long brown hair that is usually tied back in a ponytail, a completely opposite appearance to what many would expect, given his deadly skills and calculative, savage brutality in battle. Personality While mostly silent, Ryu has the demeanor and wisdom of a man far older than himself, due to his prolific lineage and mantle as a respected ninja. His exploits have given him an attitude far removed from most others, and he understands things in more abstract and philosophical terms. He adopts a tranquil nature, free flowing most of the time, but unforgiving and crushing when roused. As a ninja on a mission Ryu is a man of unstoppable will, his indomitable spirit is shown further in his exploits, refusing to give up and overcoming every obstacle in his path. His personality can range between two extremes. Outside of battles he is modest and refined, often speaking politely and being respectful, as in his conversations with Murai and Muramasa, in life and death combat with his enemies he is cold, calculative and brutal, killing without mercy. However, due to his youth, he can be hotheaded and brash sometimes, rushing head first into undesirable situations, but his flexible nature and ninja training allows him to adapt and think on his feet to find a quick solution. He displays great discipline and an understanding of the balance of power in the world around him. Ignoring the persuit of power to the dismayment of his uncle Murai, Ryu shows no signs of curiosity for the dark powers that dwelled within the Dark Dragon Blade, choosing instead to destroy it when given the chance rather than consume it's immense dark powers. Aside from the Dark Dragon Blade, Ryu also refused to keep it's light counterpart the True Dragon Sword, knowing it's existence upsets the delicate balance of the peaceful world. His discipline is further exemplified when the fiend curse is placed upon him; where a normal human would have given into his or her primal hate, rage and lust for power, corrupting the soul away and degenerating into a fiendish minion, Ryu held himself back limiting his transformation, preventing the corruption of his soul and rejecting the fiendish powers he would have gained. Walking the harsh path of the ninja, Ryu knows that life can be both cruel and short, especially for one of the Dragon Lineage, a blacklisted lineage with many enemies. He has already felt first hand the brutality of this life, as he watched his best friend who he has known since childhood Kureha, murdered right in front of his own eyes, while his clan is massacred and himself killed as he tries to save his village. Having survived the trauma and escaped death, Ryu refuses to abandon the path returning as a living revenant to exact vengeance upon those who had wronged him. Though the path he walks has transformed him into a cold, calculative killer, he still retains his humanity, often shown when he selflessly puts himself in danger to protect the people he cares about, and sometimes even showing a mutual respect for an enemy who has walked the same path as his. Ryu has never been shown killing an innocent and on many occasions upheld his duty to protect the world from demonic forces. History The son of Jô Hayabusa, Ryu was born into the Dragon Lineage legacy; as required, he would be trained from childhood to walk the path of a ninja, a way of life plagued with danger, pain and sorrow. As a child Ryu learnt many crucial survival skills under the guidance and watchful eye of Omitsu, the caretaker of the Hayabusa clan's children. Under Omitsu's care Ryu quickly befriended Kureha and the two became inseparable. Training intensified as he grew older, adapting to these difficulties, Ryu quickly excelled among his peers, becoming one of the clan's top students. His skill would earn him the right to bear the name Hayabusa as his own, mastering many ninja skills, to the delight of his father. As Ryu grew into a strong young ninja, his best friend Kureha became a Shrine Maiden. Growing up, he befriended many other members of his clan, including the veteran who fought beside his father Genjiro, Kureha's younger sister Momiji, and his uncle from his mother's side Murai, who left the clan under unknown circumstances to establish his own rogue ninja clan. Plot Ninja Gaiden (Arcade) In America, the Cult of Nostradamus was rising from obscurity. With their numbers swelling, they wanted nothing more than to fulfill the prophecy of Nostradamus, which states that a Devil King shall rise and start the apocalypse."紹介 - 忍者龍剣伝" (in Japanese). Gamest (Vol. 29): p. 103. February 1989 Jô Hayabusa knew all too familiarly what this Devil King or Jaki Ou would be capable of and thus, this donned the red ninja gi with plans to stop this cult. However, at the young age of 18, Ryu Hayabusa was eager to test his training and abilities, and so took up the blue ninja attire, and together the two Hayabusa headed to America to stop this cult. Once arriving in San Francisco, they were greeted by the cultists, men in white masks, ready to stop the two ninja. Mainly using non lethal hand to hand combat, father and son fought off hundreds of cult members consisting of masked men, street gangs, masked acrobats with claws, road warriors, ninja and sumo wrestlers, as they made their way through New Jersey, Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, American wilderness and then the Cult of Nostradamus's headquarters. Inside the headquarters, many demonic artifacts laid dormant as the Hayabusa ninja took on the cult leader, a descendant of Nostradamus. After the battle, the leader would lie dead on the floor. With their mission accomplished, the Hayabusa ninja returned to Japan. Ninja Gaiden Shadow A year later, a dictator calling himself Emperor Garuda rises with an army. On a dark stormy night, they waste no time and quickly captured New York city. There, they would attempt to awaken the Jaquio. With the aid of a katana and a grappling hook, Ryu Hayabusa took it upon himself to stop this dictator. As he scaled the skyscrapers, battling robots, he destroys their leader, the Cyborg Spider. Searching the city, Ryu encounters the kick boxing champion Gregory and his smaller manager Jack, working for Garuda. They attempted to stop Ryu, but to no avail and so were defeated in battle. Following the trail of minions and robots, Ryu began encountering the military portion of Emperor Garuda's forces, quickly dispatching them and their leader, former military commander Colonel Allen. In desperation, Garuda unleashed his ninja upon Ryu, but that proved ineffective, as Ryu defeated each ninja that went up against him. Making his way through the deadly traps and minions, Ryu came face to face with the Master Ninja, Nobleman Fūkisai. It was a hard fought battle, but Ryu killed the levitating ninja, freeing his path to Garuda himself. In the final Show down, Garuda would attempt to use his magical abilities against Ryu, flying and discharging bolts from his hand, then, in desperation, transforming into a deadly biometal being. In the aftermath, Ryu succeeds in killing Garuda, ending the emperor's reign and preventing Jaquio's awakening. Ninja Gaiden (Xbox) Now at age 21, Ryu is entrusted with the Dragon Sword as his father trains in the sacred wilderness. Working under her master Murai, the 14 year old kunoichi, Ayane, delivers messages to Ryu via kunai scrolls, inviting him to visit his uncle in the Shadow Ninja Fortress for special training. Ryu accepts this invitation and proceeds to walk the the path of the ninja during the autumn afternoon. As Ryu makes his way to the Ninja Fortress, he is ambushed by ninja of the Shadow Clan. The path a ninja must walk is merciless and cruel, as Ryu must slay Murai's ninja or be killed himself. Ryu makes his way to Murai as the sun sets. There, the two ninja have an exchange of lethal weaponry before sitting down for conversation. While discussing current affairs, Ayane rushes into the room to quickly inform them that the Hayabusa village is burning. Upon hearing this news, Ryu quickly rushes back to his village to find it under attack by Samurai warriors and mages. Arriving too late, he could only find his dead brethren laying on the ground as he fights through the hordes of Samurai. Making his way to the center of the village, Ryu attempts to save his best friend Kureha, but is unable to reach her in time and was forced to watch as she is killed right in front of his eyes by the Greater Fiend Doku, who then proceeds to behead senor Hayabusa ninja armed with the Dark Dragon Blade, a relic his clan is tasked to protect. The two square off but Ryu is quickly overcome by the Greater Fiend and the Dark Dragon Blade. Ryu collapses and seemingly dies. Hours later, the Hayabusa animal spirit appears, the peregrine falcon landing on a tree above Ryu's body. What transpires in this moment is unknown. Three weeks later, having fully healed from his wounds and informed by Murai of the mastermind behind the attack on his village, Ryu Hayabusa, donning the Black Falcon attire, makes his way towards the Vigoor Empire, an isolated landlocked country with few ways of getting in. One of the few existing routes is by air ship, one of which gets boarded by Ryu. However, on the way there, it is commandeered by Vigoorian special forces perceiving Ryu as a hostile malefactor crossing into the Vigoor border. Ryu wipes out the whole squad, facing General Dynamo atop the air ship where Ryu wounds the general and damages his powersuit, causing it to explode. The air ship crashes in a huge fiery explosion as Ryu reaches the capital city of Tairon in the darkness of the night. In Tairon, Ryu kills more special forces and MSATs before reaching Muramasa's shop and then Han's bar, where he meets Rachel. They have a brief conversation before Ryu continues his journey. As Ryu infiltrates further, he encounters the rival Black Spider ninja as well. This rival ninja clan that had tried to exterminate the Hayabusa clan for generations were also after the Dark Dragon Blade. Ryu makes his way to the the Monastery where he encounters Galla fiends, slaying them as Rachel watches. Afterward, a larger fiend Hydracubus grabs a hold of Rachel and consumes her. Ryu quickly dispatches the large fiend, saving Rachel as Ayane appears. Ayane informs Ryu that the Dark Dragon Blade's growth in power is causing fiends to appear, Rachel confirms this as explaining the stirring in her fiendish bloodline. Rachel then informs Ryu about an underground path underneath the Monastery she heard about, leading to the Emperor's Palace where Doku will likely be. Inside the Monastery, Ryu kills many more fiends, encountering the more demonic Shadow, Monk and Bast fiends. Making his way to the bottom of a deep underground cavern, Ryu discovers a large underground cementry. During a battle with some fiends, Ryu accidentally reanimates hundreds of zombies known as ghuls by getting fiend blood onto the Holy Grail. Looting the relic, Ryu battles his way through numerous ghuls, reaching the upper levels of the cavern where he uses the Holy Grail to reanimate the large Bone Dragon. The Dragon Skeleton attempts to consume him but Ryu injures it's limbs, causing the creature to fall to the bottom of the cavern, it's sheer size impacts the ground with force enough to break into another hidden section of the underground as water slowly seeps in. Ryu journeys deeper, finding an Egyptian like tomb full of ghuls. Ryu reaches a cavernous tunnel, when the area where the bone dragon landed collapses further, causing water to rush in. This quickly floods the whole area and washes Ryu into another section of the cavern with an elevator. Taking the elevator, Ryu was lead back to the Monastery, where he fought and defeated the greater fiend Alma. However, the power unleashed from her defeat destroys the Monastery, attracting the attention of the Vigoorian Military. By this time, it's daytime and the military are on full alert. With the military on his trail, Ryu decides to strike at the heart of the military base to disable them. Killing all Vigoorian soldiers and mech infrantry in his way, Ryu makes it to the military supply base by nightfall. There, he dispatches the army of soldiers, sentry robots, tanks and helicopters, as they throw everything they have at him. Once in the heart of the base, Ryu destroys the large radio tower, disabling the military's organization. With the military crippled, Ryu continues on his quest to track down Doku and the Dark Dragon Blade. Still searching for that underground path to the Palace, Ryu enters the sewers of Tairon, leading into the Aquaducts beneath the city. Making his way to the end, Ryu faces off against and slays the wind demon Paz Zuu, the door behind the demon leading into a moat surrounding the gated Zakhan. Navigating through the moat, Ryu ended in the underground passage again. This time, however, he discovers a working elevator leading to a coliseum. There, he encounters Doku, who was holding a captured Rachel. The two warriors fought again. However, this time Ryu was victorious and Doku fell. Upon dying, Doku informed Ryu that the Dark Dragon Blade was with the Emperor and that the Awakening was soon at hand. Upon hearing this, Rachel quickly sped away while Ryu continued on his path. The next leg of Ryu's journey leads him to caverns near the Zakhan palace. Once inside, Ryu navigates through a cavern of ice, fighting more fiends, including the deadlier ice Gobdecks. At the end of the ice caverns, Ryu slayed the large ice beast Yotunfrau. After smelting the Cog of Vigoor, Ryu gain access to the Fire caverns. Slaying it's fiery denizens as he navigated through the the lava filled cavern, Ryu reached the end of the cavern where he killed the Flame Dragon. Proceeding into the next area, Ryu found himself in familiar territory, as he made his way back to the Aquaducts, and eventually made his way back to the streets of Tairon. But as the awakening drew closer, fiends started flooding the streets. At Muramasa's shop, Muramasa explained to Ryu that the Dragon Sword was no match for the Dark Dragon Blade's, but required a jewel to make it complete; only then would it be powerful enough to take on the Dark Dragon Blade. After collecting all the stone tablets druing his journey, Ryu placed them on the Twin Serpent Statue near the city entrance; this activated portals throughout the world, and Ryu was suddenly pulled through one of them, leading to the Hayabusa village. There, he visited his childhood friend's grave site, Kureha. On her tombstone was the Eye of the Dragon jewel placed there out of respect. Ryu took this jewel and attached it to the hilt of his sword, unlocking the True Dragon Sword. At the same moment, Ryu had a glimpse of the Vigoorian Emperor. Now having unsealed the Dark Dragon Blade and infused with all the powers of the Evil Deities, the human Emperor was no more, there was only the Supreme Deity known as Vigoor. Wasting no time, Ryu hopped from portal to portal, ending up in an open field, with a Mayan style pyramid on the other end. Atop the pyramid was Rachel chained up with a Spirit Doku performing an Awakening ritual. As Ryu ran across the field towards them, Alma returned, empowered by Vigoor's return, she was stronger than before. The two fought but Alma was no match for Ryu and his True Dragon Sword. Doku lifted his blade, ready to kill as the sacrifice of Rachel drew closer, while Ryu rushed up the flight of stairs on the Pyramid. Alma, seeing this ran up the stairs as well, outpacing Ryu. At the last moment Alma put herself in front of Doku's blade saving her sister and returning back to her human form, but dying in the process. Ryu proceeds towards Vigoor. Making his way through the Labyrinth infested with Ghost Fishes and Ariochs. At the end of the Labyrinth, Ryu encountered Doku in his spirit form, and for the second time defeated him in combat. However, upon dying, Doku placed the Fiendish Curse on Ryu, transforming him into a fiend. But Ryu was far too disciplined to give into it's corruption, retaining his mind and soul while gaining none of the powers of a fiend, unlike the other humans who became powerful savage creatures. At the end of the labyrinth was a path leading into Zakhan Palace, with it Ryu made his way into the palace where all reality had changed and the laws of physics no longer applied. Journeying deep into the Core, Ryu fought the toughest of the fiends, even entering the underworld to defeat Ishtaros and Nicchae, ancient greater fiends of creation and destruction, and Marbus the greater fiend who guarded the way to Vigoor. Once the path was unlocked, Ryu entered a strange realm falling down and then upwards into a field of flowers. There stood the Vigoorian Emperor, reborn in a divine form and on top of him was the Dark Dragon Blade. The heavenly fields quickly became a hellish fire pit. Ryu then summoned a flying platform of earth to aid him as the large Supreme Deity reached down for him. With the might of the True Dragon Sword, Ryu killed Vigoor, but Vigoor arose again from the magma in his hellish form, and the two battled once more with Ryu winning the fight. With Vigoor dead, the fiend curse lifted and Ryu returned to normal. Ryu quickly retrieved the Dark Dragon Blade, alas his mission was completed, honoring the duty of his clan. At that moment, Rachel called from the upper portion of the magma cave, hanging onto her by her grappling gun. Ryu quickly raced over and got to her just as the cave was collapsing, as the two shot out of the ground pushed out by the spewing ash. In that moment, the Dark Dragon Blade fell out of Ryu's hand and landed right in front of the Dark Disciple. Him, who had been waiting their arrival, revealed his manipulation and identity as Murai, and quickly took the power of the Dark Dragon Blade for himself, becoming the Devil Incarnate. Ryu ultimately defeated Murai, who fell into the pit. From there, Ryu destroyed the Dark Dragon Blade with the True Dragon Sword, shattering it into pieces and teleported away. Ryu later returned the Eye of the Dragon to Kureha's grave. Ninja Gaiden:Dragon Sword Six months later the Hayabusa village is rebuilt, outside in the forest of shadows Ryu is training his protege Momiji, after their spar Momiji tells Ryu to head back to the village as she promised Sakura that she would collect flowers for Kureha's grave. After collecting the flowers, Black Spider Ninja descend upon the forest and the Hayabusa Village simultaneously. As Ryu arrives at the village, he finds the clan under attack and quickly aids the villagers, meanwhile Momiji manages to hold her own against the Black Spider ninja, but is overpowered and captured by the Red Wyrm fiend. Back at the Hayabusa Village, Ryu manages to save everyone while slaying all the Black Spider ninja and killing the Red Wyrm fiend in the Castle of the Dragon's courtyard. Ryu investigates and finds out the Black Spider ninja came in through a portal near the grave site currently sealed off with a large boulder, he also finds signs of struggle in forest. Promising not to lose Momiji the same way he lost Kureha, Ryu sets out to find her. Using the Art of the Inazuma, Ryu destroys the boulder near the grave site and enters portal, on the side a familiar place, the Monastery in Tairon and it appears to have been rebuilt. As Ryu investigates further he is attacked by the fiends, making his way through the Monastery, Ryu kills a Yotunfrau like creature, picking up a stone in the wake of it's death. Soon enough, the Monastery returns back to its destroyed state, with what was before merely an illusion created by the stone as the Ancient Greater Fiend, Ishtaros, briefly conversed with the Dragon Ninja before leaving. Ryu then enters a portal, which leads to the Stone Circle Cove, a realm of multiple portals, going through the only active portal Ryu ends up back in the Hayabusa village to the surprise of Omitsu, as Ryu seemingly came out of no where. In the village Muramasa explained to Ryu that the stone was one of the Dark Dragonstones were formed after the defeat of the Dark Dragon, each containing an essence of the god, should they ever be reunited the Dark Dragon would return and all would be destroyed. However each stone called out to the other, shining as they got closer and following them was the only way to find Momiji, Ryu was left with no choice but to go to where ever the stones may lead him. Going through the portals again, Ryu was lead back to the Aquaducts where he made his way back down to the Underground Sanctuary. There, he discovered the Dark Dragon Stone had to power of resurrection as he battled the wind demon, Paz Zuu, once more, collecting the Dark Dragonstone of Strength after defeating the demon. Returning to the Hayabusa village, Ryu finds it under attack in his absence and quickly dispatches the Black Spider ninja. Hearing the Sakura had been kidnapped, Ryu heads off in search of her in the forest of shadows. There the Black Spider ninja held Sakura hostage as they offered to free her in exchanged for the Dragon Sword, but with a distraction from Sanji, Ryu was about quickly finish off the Black Spider ninja, saving Sakura. Continuing on his quest to find Momiji, Ryu found that the Dark Dragonstones lead him to the Underground Mausoleum, encounter zombie like Ghuls once again. At the end, Ryu fought killed the large golem like creature, collecting the Dark Dragonstone of Slumber from it. Next Ryu found that stones lead him to the Underground Coliseum, where he heard an all too familiar voice. It was Spectral Doku bent on revenge and driven mad by his defeat, but Ryu prevailed again, collecting the Dark Dragonstone of Spirit. Then returning to the Magma Caverns, Ryu slayed the Flame Dragon again to collect the Dark Dragonstone of Fire, and to the Ice Cavern where he killed the Ice Dragon to gain the Dark Dragonstone of Ice. Ryu is then lead to the Isle of Destiny, a chain of strange tropical islands and jungles, where he encounters demonic Black Spider ninja and Ghost Fishes on the beaches. At the end of isles he faced the elder sorceress of the Black Spider Ninja, Obaba, having become a powerful monster through Ishtaros she attempted to kill the Dragon Ninja but fell in battle. As she died, she revealed to Ryu that Momiji is with Ishtaros. Ryu's journey would then lead him to the Pyramid where he had saved Rachel 6 months prior. Here, Ryu faced the deadly Berserker fiends again, at the end of it Ryu killed a Rasetsu like creature to gain the Dark Dragonstone of Serpent. Returning to the Hayabusa village, Ryu received explosive arrows made by Denroku and Hanamaru. With only one Dark Dragonstone left and in the possession of Ishtaros Ryu followed stones straight to the gates of the underworld, where he finally found Momiji imprisoned by the Ancient Fiend Sisters Ishtaros and Nicchae. At that moment, Ishtaros telekinetically pulled all the Dark Dragonstones from Ryu, making herself all powerful with might of the Dark Dragon. With this power she manages to defeat Ryu in combat, but through the spirit of Kureha, Momiji unfuses the Eye of the Dragon, sending it towards the Dragon Sword. Ryu now armed with the True Dragon Sword defeats Ishtaros. While dead, Ishtaros's body still contained the power of the Dark Dragon, and with her sister's floating corpse, Nicchae attempted to resurrect Vigoor, however the power was sapped from Vigoor, causing him to degenerate into his chaos skeletal form where he was quickly made short work of by Ryu. Nicchae seeing all hope for an Age of Fiends and enslavement of humans dashed went mad, knowing that the Dark Dragon would soon emerge and destroy all including humans and fiends. Knowing that she was going to die soon, she wanted nothing more than feel the joy of killing Ryu before she goes, instead she was slain in battle by Ryu. Afterwards, the Dark Dragon emerged, Ryu had a tough battle as he took on the colossal deity. After a hard battle, Ryu defeated the Dark Dragon and returned home to his village with Momiji. The Vampire War 6 Months later alongside his father, Ryu found himself battling the vampire fiend known as Crimson in the dark of night. For millennium Vampires have fought against the Ninja of the Dragon Lineage, and now it was drawing to close. In the battle Ryu guillotine throws Crimson into a building as it collapses on the Vampire. Crimson survives and replies with a sonic attack at Ryu, Jô thens pushes his only son out of the way and takes the blunt of the attack, luckily Jô is carrying the Eye of the Dragon and remains unharmed. The light from jewel weakens Crimson as Ryu speeds in and cuts down the fiend, the two ninja make their way back to the Hayabusa village as the sun rises. As Jô is healing from his wound, Momiji informs Ryu of news that Black Spider Ninja are planning to invade Tokyo. Ryu asks Momiji to watch over the village as he heads to Tokyo to investigate. Ninja Gaiden II Spying on the Black Spider Ninja from afar Ryu investigates their motives in Tokyo. At Muramasa's new shop in Tokyo the Black Spider Ninja raid and snare a woman, just as they're about finish her off with a claw weapon, Ryu intervenes kills one of them a shuriken to the head, he then slices another in half. Just then more Black Spider Ninja ambush Ryu as one of them escapes with the captured woman. Ryu makes his way through the city fighting waves of Black Spider Ninja. From atop a tall building, Ryu spots the captured woman, as another woman interrogates her. Jumping towards the other building, Ryu crashes through the glass window and suddenly fights more ninja as they rush him. Working his way to the top of the tower, Ryu kills a Rasetsu ninja attempting to slow him down. As the mysterious women is getting away with the captured women on a helicopter, Ryu throws his shuriken, forcing her to release the woman as Ryu catches the falling woman. As he unties her Ryu finds out she's a CIA agent name Sonia and she's been looking for him, warning him about the plot to resurrect the Archfiend and the impending attack on his village. Ryu rushes back to his village only to see it decimated for the second time. Fighting his way through countless ninja warriors and mages, Ryu makes his way through the the village and into the Castle of the Dragon, where he works his way to top just as his father still healing from his wound is fighting the Black Spider Clan's leader Genshin. Just as Ryu enters the room, Jô is knocked down a collasped floor while the mysterious woman known as Elizébet gets away with the Demon Statue. Ryu and Genshin battle to a close draw, but just as it appears Genshin is going to win, Jô appears and takes on Genshin. Jô then orders his son to retrieve the Demon Statue from Elizébet as he is fighting Genshin, Ryu reluctantly obeys his father. Ryu follows Elizébet to New York City, a city now taken over by fiends now that she had awaken the Greater Fiend Alexei. Fighting the many hordes of Van Gelf fiends, Black Spider ninja and demon dragons, Ryu makes his through the city, then through the sewers and then through the subways where destroys Gigadeath with a finishing stab and slice to the head. Up on the surface Ryu slays kills the giant troll like fiend known as Godomus before being flown in helicopter piloted by Sonia to the Statue of Liberty. Fighting his way up to the top of the statue, Ryu encounters Alexei, who compares humans to flies, although boasting about his great power and immortal lifespan he is mortally wounded by Ryu and dies. Following Elizébet's trail Ryu is lead to the Aqua City in Italy. It's in this city where he first encounters the deadly Gaja and Werewolves. The journey through this city of canals takes him into the waterway systems underneath the city, here he discovers an ancient ruin area submerged in water where he slays the large loch ness monster like Water Dragon, running up it's large long neck with his sword slitting it's throat vertically and then impaling it into the creature's head. Navigating his way out he winds'up in a bone pit underneath the Lycanthropes' Castle. Here Ryu defends himself against numerous skeletal creatures including a large skeleton monster, destroying them all before making his way through the Castle. Slaying werewolf after werewolf Ryu meets up with their leader Volf the Greater Fiend of Storms. In a 1 on 1 showdown in the ancient coliseum Ryu kills the beast prompting the werewolves in the stands to rush in at him, after killing many werewolves Sonia arrives in her helicopter to finish them off as Ryu grabs on. Tracking down Elizébet, Ryu and Sonia catch up to the Daedalus, the large flying fortress and flagship of the Black Spider Ninja. Infiltrating the Daedalus, Ryu fights his way through the swarms of black spider ninja armed with automatic guns and high tech gear, mech suits and robots. Sabotaging the airship as he makes his way to Elizébet, however Genshin stood in his way. In the large cargo bay the two super ninja battle once again, ending in a draw as the Daedalus breaks in half. Stuck in the free falling half Ryu and Sonia grab the nearest motocycle and escape just as the the falling airship hits the ground, crashing into a icy mountain in Russia. Picking himself up after the incident, Ryu found himself fighting large nuclear armadillo like fiend, weakening the fiery beast, Ryu impales the creature's brain until it falls, exploding in a nuclear mushroom cloud. After finding Sonia, Ryu journeys alone into Moscow, a city now over run with fiends and black spider ninja after it's military was wiped out by Zedonius, the Greater Fiend of Flames. Ryu would eventually make it to the clock tower killing another Godomus along the way, here he fought and killed the Greater Fiend. Still trailing Elizébet, Ryu ends up in the Amazon rainforest, making his way past the many monsterous creatures and Black Spider Tech Ninja stationed there. Deep in the underground tunnel Ryu slays a large tunnel worm before making his way towards Elizébet. To slow him down Elizébet commands her Black Dragon to kill the Dragon Ninja, but proves futile as Ryu finishes off the beast. As Ryu drew nearer the Elizébet used the Demon statue to enter the Temple of Sacrifice deep in a cavern as a result blood rained from the skies. Ryu worked his way through the caverns killing the legendary Quetzalcoatl, before confronting Elizébet deep inside the Temple. Here Elizébet revealed herself to be a Greater Fiend and ruler of Blood, while mockingly stating that the demon statue was with the Inferno High Priest and the plot to resurrect the Archfiend was already underway. After defeating Elizébet in battle, Ryu is approached by Genshin who reveals the location of the Archfiend's revival to be at the summit of Mt. Fuji in Japan, and that it is there where they will finish their duel. Wasting no time Ryu makes his way heads back the Hayabusa Village, there he is approached by Ayane with the Eye of the Dragon, with it Ryu gains the True Dragon Sword once again. Slaying his way through the final waves of Black Spider Ninja Ryu navigates through familiar Shadow Ninja Fortress now ruined before climbing Mt Fuji. He is than approached by Muramasa, for a little prep talk. Making his way through the Black Spider grave site Ryu reaches the summit where he and Genshin face off for the final time. After a close fight Genshin falls and Ryu continues on into Mt. Fuji and into the Underworld. Here he encounter Marbus for the second time bent on revenge, but Ryu easily kills the Greater Fiend. Ryu makes his way through the many domains of the Underworld, from the fire pits of Hell to the dark Abyss, killing countless fiends and the 4 Greater Fiends he had previously killed in the world of the living, including Alexei who had taken Sonia captive as she followed Ryu. After rescuing Sonia Ryu heads into the Hall of Blood where he encounters Genshin again now a fiend, the two battle and as Genshin falls he reveals to Ryu that he had no regrets he walking the path of the ninja til the end, Ryu being able to relate understood as the two form a mutual respect. As he died Genshin handed Ryu the Black Spider's sacred weapon, the Blade of the Archfiend. Now armed with both the Blade of the Archfiend and the True Dragon Sword, Ryu headed deeper after slaying Elizébet. Reaching his goal Ryu ends up in the domain of the Archfiend's revival, interrupting a ritual being performed by the Infernal High Priest Dagra Dai. Ryu quickly defeats the Infernal High Priest, in desperation, Dagra Dai offers himself up as sacrifice hastening the return of the Archfiend Vazdah. Ryu does battle with the large deity, and prevents him from escaping to the summit of Mt Fuji. Afterwards Sonia appears and the two work they way out, but a blood drop from one of Ryu's injuries falls drips down landing on the dead Archfiend. With this Vazdah is revived in his full form flying straight up to the top, Ryu seeing this jumps up from his location, the two fight another epic battle before Ryu finishes Vazdah off in a fury of attacks, the death of Vazdah releases a huge amount of energy exploding at the top of Mt. Fuji. In the aftermath Sonia is looking for Ryu on the mountain, and relieved to find him under a large rubble boulder. The Ryu and Sonia then look on as the sun rises, Ryu exclaiming "The light of dawn drives away the darkness once again". Ryu is later seen in the Black Spider graveyard planting the Blade of the Archfiend, honoring Genshin in a graveyard filled with swords of fallen warriors. As he leaves the graveyard, Ryu catches a glimpse of the Mugen Tenshin princess Kasumi. He says to her, "Darkness is destined to lift in the end. I still have much left to do..." as he walks away. Ninja Gaiden (NES) Ryu receives a pre written letter from his father, explaining that he had gone off to a life or death duel due to circumstances, should he not return Ryu was to travel to America and seek out an old acquaintance Dr. Walter Smith. In search of his father's murderer, Ryu sets off to America where he encounters the first of the Malice Four in Jay's Bar, a deadly axe wielding man who calls himself the Barbarian. After killing the Barbarian, Ryu encounters CIA Agent Irene Lew, she gives him the Demon Statue and asks him to quickly go before they come. Going on his way Ryu soon encounters Bomberhead trying to stop him, but Ryu kills the second of the Malice Four. Without any leads Ryu decides to look for that acquaintance of his father living out in wilderness. Upon meeting, Dr. Walter Smith wastes no time, explaining to Ryu that long ago, his father and the doctor went on an archeology expedition to South America where they discovered some ruins. In there was a tablet telling a story of an ancient battle taking place 700 years ago, when Demon the Deity of Destruction entered the earth realm causing deaths on untold scales and destroying many nations. Then Ryu's ancestor, the Shinobi took up the mantle of the Dragon Ninja bloodline, upholding his duty shinobi fought the Deity in an epic struggle. The Demon had powerful attacks but Shinobi countered with the aid of the Dragon Sword, the very same one Ryu carried. Although defeated, Shinobi was unable to destroy Demon, so he sealed him away in two Demon Statues, the Statue of Light and the Statue of Shadow, warning should they ever be reunited in the ruin temple during the dark moon, the Demon will return. Knowing this information Jô took the Demon Statue of Shadow with him to Japan while Walter took the Demon Statue of Light with him to America, keeping they safeguarded and separated. Before Walter could finish his story Basque of the Malice four steals the Demon Statue of Shadow from Ryu. Walter Smith tells Ryu to get the Statue back and he wastes no time chasing Basque. Eventually Ryu kills Basque and retrieve the statue, but upon returning he finds Walter mortally wounded, telling Ryu all he could before dying as the CIA showed up. Going with the CIA agents to their headquarters, Ryu meets Foster who brings him up to speed on the situation. Explaining that the Devil King Jaquio had returned and that he intended to become all powerful with the aid of Demon. Ryu was then flown to South America where he parachuted out into the Jungle. Once there Ryu made his way to Jaquio, but was forced to give Jaquio the Demon Statues as he held Irene hostage threatening to kill her. Left with no choice Ryu obeyed and was dropped through a trap door. Fighting his way through the caverns Ryu made his way back to the ruins, at the top he ran into his father's killer Bloody Malth, leader of the Malice Four. Having his vengeance, Ryu defeated Malth, however before his death, Malth claimed that Jô is still alive and when Ryu meets him it will be the last thing sees, laughing as he died. Ryu journel further, until he finally found Jaquio accompanied by the Masked Devil, who turned out to be Ryu's father under control, Jaquio laughed as he forced father and son to fight to the death. Ryu thinking quickly realized his father was being controlled by an orb and destroyed it freeing his father. Jaquio then attempted to blast Ryu with a powerful attack but Jô pushed his son out of the way and took the force of the attack. Ryu then retaliated by killing Jaquio in combat. Ryu then assisted his father with Irene, as they limped out, Jô told Ryu to quickly retrieve the Demon Statues, but it was too late as lunar eclipsed took place, the dark moon awakening the Demon. Ryu took up the Dragon Sword and after a long hard battle, the Demon was defeated, but it's power unleashed caused the ruins too crumble. Unable to make it out in time Jô told Ryu that his fate was tied to this place, and for Ryu to take Irene and go before it was too late. With little time left, Ryu was forced to abandon his father, Ryu screamed for his father as Jô perished in the collapse, Ryu was now the last of the Dragon Lineage. Outside Foster radio for Irene to kill Ryu but she refused and the two watched the sunrise. Ninja Gaiden III:The Ancient Ship of Doom A Ryu doppelganger assassinates Irene and frames the original for murder. During his quest to clear his name, Ryu discovers that Irene is still alive and that his doppelgänger was a BIO-NOID sent by Irene's old boss and former acquaintance of his, Foster. This was followed by an engagement with Ryu's doppelgänger which ended in Ryu's defeat. But in their second encounter, Ryu turns the tables, defeating his doppelgänger instead. But in a shocking turn-of-events, Foster is double-crossed by his accomplice, Clancy, who murders him. Clancy reveals the true nature of their location, the Castle Rock Fortress, as an inter-dimensional warship, which he intends to use for global dominance. With both Irene and himself caught up in Clancy's machinations, Ryu is forced to take action. Subsequently, Ryu foils Clancy's plans and flees the crumbling Castle Rock Fortress with Irene. Ninja Gaiden II:The Dark Sword of Chaos Ryu travels on the rooftops of New York killing fighting demonic forces, making his way to the train station Ryu defeats the brutish Viking spirit knowns as Dando. As Ryu questions these events to himself, Robert T. Sturgeon appears from the shadows informing Ryu that Irene had been kidnapped, telling to head to the Tower of Lahja. Ryu then jumps on a freight train fighting enemies as it traveled to the countryside, once there Ryu moved through the mountains killing Baron Spider. In darkness Ryu makes his way to the Temple up Lahja, scaling to the top of the tower Ryu encounters Ashtar who was holding Irene hostage, while forcing Ryu to fight Funky Dynamite. After slaying the cybernetic creature, Robert appeared with US army surrounding the Tower. Ashtar using Irene as a shield open a portal to the demon world and hoped through. Ryu and Robert then followed before the portal closed. On the other side Ryu makes his way to Ashtar, who stabs Irene as the Dragon ninja approached, in a hard fought duel, Ryu kills the sorcerer and rescues Irene. Irene then tells Ryu that he has to destroy an alter before demon is revived, Ryu head on further while asking Robert to escort Irene out of the Demon Realm. However Ryu sense something strange when he battles familiar enemies. At the alter of sacrifice, Ryu later finds an injured Robert who informs him that Jaquio had taken Irene, telling Ryu to head on as he held off the demons. Ryu then reaches the alter of sacrifice where Jaquio reveals that he had been resurrected by Demon upon it's death after their last encounter, giving him unfathomable power. Despite this Ryu kills Jaquio, but Jaquio blood floods the floor and eventually touches the Sword of Chaos, sapping the life out of Irene as sacrifice and reviving him as the Demon of Destruction. After a hard battle Ryu defeats the Jaquio Demon. Irene is then revived by the Dragon Sword. Powers & Abilities Easily one of the top tier characters, Ryu Hayabusa is stated as being the most powerful ninja in the world''"The canals running through this city lead to a giant castle, a once beautiful architectural legacy now transformed into the lair of the Greater Fiend Volf. Volf's iron fist reigns over an army of werewolves. He is a Berserker, as bloodthirsty as a beast, and his never-ending hunger for battle has led him to prepare a fitting arena for a duel to the death with the world's most powerful Ninja"''-Ninja Gaiden 2/Sigma 2 Lycanthrope's Castle chapter intro screen blurb, hence his nickname "the Singular Super Ninja". This is further exemplified by his exploits where he defeated his toughest foe, a being of omnipotent nature, a Supreme Deity. Ryu's ongoing rigorous training from childhood augmented with his bloodline's ties to ancient evil deities have shaped him into a powerhouse warrior. Physically conditioned Ryu's speed and acrobatic skills are beyond exceptional, and while his strength may not be as immense as those of fiendish bloodlines, it is strong enough to wield hefty weapons and still maintain his agility. Cognitively he is a tactical fighter and highly calculative in battle. His skills in hand to hand combat and weaponry are at the master level, particularly his swordsmanship skill. Due to his level of mastery, Ryu is often seen using his weapons at their peak physical limit, often requiring the services of a legendary blacksmith to upgrade his weapons past these limitations. Ryu specializes in a martial art known as Hayabusa style Ninjutsu and his main weapon is the Dragon Sword, a powerful relic passed down from generation to generation, this is his signature weapon. Although the Dragon Sword was not original his, Ryu tasked with safeguarding it during the Dark Dragon Blade Incident, proved his worthiness by demonstrating his proficiency and valor with the sword, allowing his father to proudly part with it and continue the tradition of passing it down his lineage. Appearances in Other Media Ryu is a playable character in all Dead or Alive games. He is often considered a top tier character for his speed and strong moves. He is portrayed by Kane Kosugi in DOA: Dead or Alive where he performs a role similar to the games. He is shown as faithful friend to Kasumi and Hayate. His fights are against Eliot, and Bayman, both of whom are defeated. He is the only male character who makes it to the semi-finals (the others are Kasumi, Tina Armstrong and Christie). He and Kasumi are shown to have romantic feelings for each other. In the Ninja Gaiden OVA, Ryu is the main character. After Irene is kidnapped, Ryu goes to save her. After killing many demons he faces Professor Bucky-Wise, the villain of the movie who becomes a demon himself, and kills him. He does not wear a ninja-mask in either film but wears a bandanna instead. Ryu has appeared in the fan-made CG movie series, Dead Fantasy, accompanied by Momiji. He saved a weakened Kasumi from the Kasumi X clones by diving from the sky and killing them in one strike. He then catches Kasumi in his arms after she falls unconscious. After Momiji scanned her memories, the two of them leave a red lake full of dead clones with Kasumi, most likely getting aid from her wounds. It's currently unknown who will be Ryu's Final Fantasy rival.Ryu makes a guest appearance in PS3 version of Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce, offering quests to the player. If the player completes all of his challenges they earn the right to wield his Dragon Sword in battle. Ryu's outfit makes appearances in many media as well. In Halo 3, as a way of saying thanks to team ninja for putting Nicole-458 in a DOA game, Bungie made the Hayabusa armor, which shares some resemblance to the ninja of the future alternate costume in Ninja Gaiden. Ryu's Legendary Black Falcon outfit makes a cameo as an optional costume in Super Swing Golf 2. Trivia *In Ninja Gaiden and its other remakes, Ryu is 21 years old. In Dragon Sword and Ninja Gaiden II/ Sigma 2, he's 22 years old. *The coloration of Ryu's eyes on the Xbox consoles have a darker green coloration, where as on the Playstation 3 consoles they have a more brighter golden hue to them. *Tomonobu Itagaki revealed that Ryu's eyes are green because "green seemed to be a cool color". *Ryu Hayabusa has been featured in many top videogame character lists, especially ones specializing in the Ninja archetype. These lists are a GameDailyGaming's Greatest Patriots: Team Japan, GameDaily, May 19, 2009 list with Ryu as one of Japan's greatest patriots, GamesRadarTop 7 Assassins, GamesRadar, 2008-02-05 and GameDailyTop 25 Game Archetypes,GameDaily, January 23, 2009 which feature Ryu representing the Ninja Archetype, and numerious lists with Ryu ranking #1 including Virgin MediaTop Ninja Videogame Ninja, Virgin Media, CrunchGearCrunchArcade: Top Ten Video Game Ninjas, CrunchGear, March 31, 2008, UnrealityUnreality Unreal Power Rankings: The Top 5 Video Game Ninjas, PC World Top Ten video game ninjas, PC World, 06 August, 2010, Screw AttackTop Ten Ninjas, Screw Attack, January 8, 2010 and Top Ten FTWTop Ten FTW: Top 10 Ninjas in ALL of Gaming!, Feb 12, 2011. References Category:Characters Category:Ninja Gaiden II Characters Category:Ninja Gaiden I Characters